In this touching world premiere of Erin Shields’ latest play about familial bonds, sisters Liz (Maev Beaty) and Delia (Liisa Repo-Martell) unravel a lifetime of memories. Delia is free-spirited and blunt, wearing her emotions on her sleeve, while Liz is more logical and practical. At times, Liz must make the first move to ensure peace and stability, no matter what life may throw at her and Delia.
Shields’ storyline does not follow a linear path in Liz and Delia’s lives. Instead, the audience watches, hears, and sees fragments of multiple conversations, spanning nearly fifty years, filled with hilarity, poignancy, harshness, and heartbreaking moments.
That’s a clever technique Shields uses, showing only snippets of conversation.
As we recall human nature and events, we don’t do so linearly. We first recall the emotions and feelings of the time – did we laugh, cry, get angry, or become frustrated? Emotions transcend time – we can recall what we felt at any particular moment in our lives, five, ten, or twenty years after it happened. Humans don’t often remember what happened step by step when time passes.
Under this dramatic lens, Andrea Donaldson’s tender direction and vision of creating real, genuine people in Shields’s tear-jerker of a story hit home, right at the heart.
Ting-Huan Christine Urquhart’s modern, ethereal set design on the Berkeley stage, lit by Andre du Toit’s warm lighting, serves as a powerful visual reminder that You, Always remains timeless. Shawn Kerwin selects costumes that subtly highlight the two sisters’ distinct characterizations. At one point, there is a silent movement piece between Beaty and Repo-Martell, during which Kerwin’s costumes not only look terrific on stage but also highlight a striking, dramatic climactic point of interest, thanks to Thomas Ryder Payne’s selection of goose-bump-inducing orchestral music that resonates throughout the house.
Maev Beaty and Liisa Repo-Martell carry the show with genuine, raw vulnerability and passion. They’re highly believable as sisters, capturing the push and pull of their relationship with grace, dignity, and honesty, often with deft silliness and a dash of the naughty.
Donaldson directs with conviction and purpose, knowing instinctively when Beaty and Repo-Martell should move and when to remain silent or still. When Maev and Liisa laugh in a scene, I find myself laughing along. When they hurt, I feel akin to them. When they’re on the verge of tears, I feel one in the corner of my eye.
You, Always also offers the audience an opportunity to witness two of Canada’s finest theatre artists showcase their craft.
How so?
It’s all in the repetition of the title.
“You, Always” are two very important words spoken quite often throughout the play. The task is to incorporate them to suit the emotional context. Beaty and Repo-Martell have done just that with commitment. The two words fit the scene’s emotional integrity, and I completely buy them each time.
Why else does You, Always work on a personal level for me?
We guys also share that same connection to our ‘brothers’, whether through blood or ‘unofficial adoption’. I won’t tell you what I say to the ‘brothers’ when there’s guy talk going on because that’s between us. However, the sentiment is comparable to Liz and Delia telling each other: “You, Always’.
That’s the power of theatre, and that’s why You, Always works.
And that’s why you should go and see it.
Running time: approximately 90 minutes with no interval/intermission.
The performance runs to February 22 at the Berkeley Street Theatre, 26 Berkeley Street, Toronto. For tickets: canadianstage.com or call (416) 368-3110
CANADIAN STAGE presents the World Premiere
You, Always by Erin Shields
Directed by Andrea Donaldson
Set Design: Ting-Huan 挺歡 Christine Urquhart
Costume Design: Shawn Kerwin
Lighting Design: Andre du Toit
Sound Design: Thomas Ryder Payne
Choreographer: Stephanie Graham
Fight/Intimacy Director: Christina Fox
Stage Manager: Scarlett Larry
Performers: Maev Beaty and Liisa Repo-Martell
